The State Board of Education recently voted to appoint Christine M. Thompson as Executive Director for the organization. Thompson succeeds Vince Yanez who announced earlier this month that he will leave the post to accept a position at the Arizona Community Foundation.
The State Board of Education is created by the Arizona Constitution and charged with the responsibility of regulating the conduct of the public school system.
The Board is composed of the following eleven members: the superintendent of public instruction, the president of a state university or state college, four lay members, a president or chancellor of a community college district, a person who is an owner or administrator of a charter school, a superintendent of a high school district, a classroom teacher and a county school superintendent. Each member, other than the superintendent of public instruction, is appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate.
Before joining the State Board of Education in 2012 as Deputy Director, Thompson served as Associate Vice President for Government Affairs for the Arizona Board of Regents and as Director of Government Relations for the State Bar of Arizona. Her background also includes work in communications, development and alumni relations, and management of a nonprofit involved with higher education advocacy.
Thompson is an advocate for Common Core. She stated, “I look forward to working with our partners across the P-20 spectrum and supporting the Board in their unwavering commitment to further advance our high quality K-12 public education system to ensure Arizona students are on a continued path to college and career readiness.”
Thompson currently serves as a member of the Arizona Foundation for Legal Services and Education Board of Directors, and as a member of the University of Arizona College of Law Association Board of Directors. She previously served as Chairman of Kids Voting Arizona, as Treasurer of Soroptomist International of Phoenix, and, appointed by Governor Hull, as Student Regent on the Arizona Board of Regents.